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First Emergency Use of Whole-Aircraft Parachute
Ahotasu writes "Over at SpaceFlightNow, there is a short NASA news release discussing the development of and first emergency use of a production parachute system for a general aviation aircraft. Whole-ultralight parachute systems have been available and used for some time, but this is apparently the first use in a "certified general-aviation aircraft". From the article: "In October 2002, a pilot released his single engine aircraft's parachute and landed safely in a Texas mesquite- tree grove. The pilot was uninjured, and there was minimal damage to the plane. The safe landing made aviation history, as it was the first emergency application of an airframe parachute on a certified aircraft." Here's the company's website. Looks like right now, they only have models for a select few gen. aviation aircraft, probably the most popular models."
If only Scotty had one of these for the Enterprise!!??
Whole boat lifevests?
Sigpilot : I'm in the pipe, 5 by 5.
and one giant leap for airplane drag racing.
Slashdotter are stupid and biased.
Propelled by a solid-fuel rocket motor, the parachute is released from a special opening on top of the fuselage.
Cool!!! A rocket-propelled parachute!
Now it just needs a nuclear-powered life raft for the 'water landings'.
-- Heisenberg might have slept here.
Just what I would buy if I were a Democratic Party congressperson who was considering flying in a private aircraft before next term's elections.
-- 3 events that reshaped the world in the 20th century: WW1, WW2, and WWW
How will we get rid of unwanted politicians and pop stars???
Xaotik Designs
That's exactly what John Denver, JFK Jr, and Paul Wellstone said!
Hell yea. I'd rather die in my sleep like the pilot.
If tits were wings it'd be flying around.
Anyone else get the mental image of a 747 sticking out of the ground with a giant parachute draped over it when they read the headline?
Then maybe my wife wont get so mad when I bring home a box of match sticks
Am I the only one that read this post and wondered about the airspeed of a fully-laden African Swallow?
...I was thinking of a giant anvil popping out of the chute moments before the plane, anvil, and coyote plummet to the desert floor below.
Speaking from experience, the one plant on earth that I least want to fall wile-e-coyote style onto would be a Texas mesquite.
I once spent a spring break picking the immature ones (1' tall at most) out of some dry, rocky soil, and it was horrible. Those plants were created by cross pollinating pure evil with cruelty.
If all the parachute does is drop you into something WORSE than a cactus patch, well, maybe I wouldn't deploy...
Austin is more fun than Dallas.
While I don't doubt the validity of the article, comments like this make me wonder.
We have Mesquite trees here in Hawaii (we call 'em Keawe). The trees support 2 to 3 inch thorns and drop branches like there's no tomorrow. I've been lost in a Keawe forest and let me tell you , by the time I made it out I was slashed dotted.
A friend of mine once pulled his car under a Keawe tree and popped two tires.
While I don't doubt that he landed safely thanks to the parachute... I DO doubt that he got out of the grove safely :))
Of course, maybe he just hunkered down... lit a few branches and grilled a delicious dinner and waited for helecopters to drop him a ladder.
Aloha
If the wings are removed, it will be easier
Finally we can install the feature that every trainee pilot has always dreaded- the legendary "Wings Fall Off" switch!
At night, turn on your landing light. If you don't like what you see, turn it off...
:)